Sol 6.1

  1. Drinking fellowship with kings, and their crown, belonged

    to Mujashiʿ, along with the choicest crimson wine.

  2. And if indeed you ask the sons of Sulaym which of us

    is nearer to every noble lineage and worthy deed,

  3. Maʿn’s kinsmen will surely tell you—seek them out—

    with full knowledge, as will the proud men of Sammal.

  4. Indeed, the sky’s stars are ours, above you,

    and the shining sun, and every crescent moon.

  5. And ours are the strongholds of every lofty, towering mountain,

    inaccessible, and every much-frequented dwelling.

  6. Indeed, the son of a sister of Kulayb’s sons has a maternal uncle

    who, when merits are compared, is the basest of maternal uncles.

  7. The husband of a Kulayb woman married away from her kin holds on

    to her, with neither noble ancestry nor beauty.

  8. Indeed, I found that the sons of Kulayb were only

    created—by your mother!—three nights ago.

  9. The scant pool slakes their thirst, though were it visited by

    two rats, it would not moisten them with even a drop.

  10. They bestow no kindness for which to seek a favor in return

    for themselves, nor do they repay with generosity.

  11. They wager on the fine steeds among their donkeys,

    from the finish line of al-Ghadhawan and al-Salsal.

  12. And it is as though they wiped, with their donkey’s face—

    the one with two markings—the brow of Dhu al-ʿUqqal.

  13. They follow them as an advance party on their donkeys,

    foes of Shuʿayba’s valley with its scant pools.

  14. And all day, from the blaze of noon, he seeks refuge

    in the shade, wherever it shifts, with every move.

  15. And I thought my war, as it strutted with spears,

    was milking a she-ass, O son of Umm Riʿal.

  16. No! By the place where I stroked the right side of His House,

    and I hastened, disheveled, in pilgrim consecration on unconsecrated ground.

Sol 6.1